Chapter 79

Joe’s POV

Joe saved the precious prize, Liam’s hair first. Then he grabbed the money, knowing twenty dollars was quite a lot. William’s hair, however, he dropped, but he was pretty sure that it landed on his shirt.

Only… he didn’t know which.

He and William had similar hair colors and lengths so he had a hard time telling them apart. He picked the one he was almost certain was William’s… he thought.

“What’s the hold up?” William asked from behind him.

Joe hurriedly shoved the hair and the money into the envelope and licked it sealed this time. Then he dropped it into the mailbox.

“It’s done!” Joe said, returning to where William waited, closer to the school.

William nodded, relieved. “Now we just have to wait.”

Aria’s POV

At work, I received an unknown call on my cell phone, which I promptly ignored. I thought that was the last of it, but then another call came in from an unknown number. It could have been the same unknown caller, it could have been different, but since it was my cell phone and I was at work, I turned my phone onto silent and totally ignored it.

At the end of the work day, as I walked out to my car, I finally checked my phone. I had thirteen missed calls and four messages. Before I could check them, though, I stopped.

One of Liam’s friends, of the group who loved to belittle me back in the day, was standing beside my car. Six years hadn’t been kind to his waistline or his hairline. His wolfish grin was the same. I tried to remember his name. I wanted to say… Robert, but I wasn’t sure that was correct.

When I’d left Liam, I had thought I left all of his horrible friends behind too. Some of these guys had been so horrible, I was surprised Liam was still friends with them.

“Aria!” Robert said. No, it was definitely Robert, I remembered now. He always introduced himself as Robby to the single women, as if that made him more approachable.

I hadn’t seen him in years, and had no idea why he was hanging out by my car, seemingly waiting for me. How was I supposed to respond? Was I to be courteous, or rude?

Presumably he was still Liam’s friend so I leaned toward polite.

“Hello…”

“Robby,” he said, flashing me the same shark-like smile he often used in the bars and clubs.

“Hello, Robert,” I said. I might be presently single, but that did not mean I would fall victim to his theoretical charms. I was too old to fall for the false bravado, and too experienced to believe any of the lies.

I made a show of glancing around. “Are you here visiting Liam?”

“No, actually. He doesn’t know I’m here and I’d like to keep it that way.”

My nerves prickled. Enough with the niceties then, I was ready to get to the point. “What are you doing here, then?”

“I’m here to talk to you,” he said, smiling impossibly wider.

“Me?” Without Liam’s knowledge? I really didn’t like this. “Okay. I’m here. Talk.”

Robert rolled his eyes. “God, Aria, you haven’t changed a bit. Would it kill you to lighten up?”

“If that’s all,” I said, gesturing to my car – which he was currently leaning on. Maybe he had forgotten the terrible treatment of me by him and his friends in years past, but I never would. Without a vastly overdue apology, I wasn’t going to forgive either.

“It isn’t.” Robert pushed off my car to stand upright. Sighing, he crossed his arms. “Listen, it’s no secret that we never got along.”

“Correct,” I said.

“But we both care about Liam. And he cares about you.”

That was enough to quiet me for now. “I’m listening.”

“His birthday is coming up. We’re all throwing a surprise party for him at his house.”

When Robert said that, I assumed he meant the house Liam and I had shared together. It was still strange hearing it referred to as Liam’s house, even though I gave up my right to ownership a long time ago.

“When you say, ‘we’re all…’ who do you mean?” I asked carefully.

“You know who,” Robert said. “All of Liam’s old friends will be there, as well as some of your co-workers, that assistant of his, Sophia…”

Any desire I had to attend that party immediately flew out the window at the mention of Sophia’s name.

“I know you don’t get along with even half of these people, but… Liam’s been talking about you a lot lately. He’s said how much he still cares for you, and how he hopes you two can resolve things.”

“He said all that?” I asked. To Robert? I added in my head.

If Liam confided in him that much, maybe I had misjudged Robert. It was likely that he’d changed since the past. We all had, in a way.

When he unhooked his arm, I caught sight of the ring on his finger. A wedding band.

Maybe he had changed.

“Aria, I know we were assholes to you back then. Liam harped on us all the time, but we were dumb twenty-somethings with something to prove, you know?”

When I gave him a blank stare in reply, he sighed, shaking his head.

“I’m doing it again, passing off blame. My wife gets on me all the time. She’ll be at the party too. You’d like her. She doesn’t put up with any of my shit.”

Indeed, I liked her already.

“I’m still not sure I’d be welcomed there,” I said, thinking of Sophia.

“Liam would want you there. If you don’t show, he’ll spend all night watching the door, hoping you’ll walk through.”

It was nice of Robert to say that but I couldn’t even imagine Liam being that hung up on anyone, let alone me. “He wouldn’t do that.”

Robert gave me a level stare. It told me more than any words could.

“He didn’t…” I said, still unsure.

“Right after you left him. Before he quit the parties all together. It didn’t matter where we were, or even if we were halfway across the world. Liam was parked somewhere in eye-line with the door, waiting for you to walk through it.”

Robert laughed a little, sad. “We mocked him for it. We were assholes, and didn’t see how real things were for him and you. But we all get it now.” He shook his head again. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry for the way we treated you back then.”

“Thank you,” I replied. My anger was easier to hold on to when I didn’t have an apology. Now that I did have one, I didn’t know what to think.

“Come to the party,” Robert said. “Not for me, or any of us. But for Liam.” Robert smiled, and I could see now the charm I’d missed before. When he wasn’t my enemy, he wasn’t so bad. “Keep him from staring at the damn door.”

Even if I could be polite with Robert now, and even if all Liam’s other friends who had been jerks apologized to me, I still wouldn’t be comfortable at that party. Especially with Sophia there.

But… as tumultuous as things were between Liam and me, he was still important to me.

I couldn’t miss his birthday.

“Say you’ll come,” Robert pressed once more.

I asked, “What time?”